Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

After all, it's got the coolest bottle ever...and it's won some tasty awards. Got one for Christmas, but haven't opened it yet....last bottle I had was 2+ years ago and I remember it being pretty solid. Does anyone dig this? Is it like Noah's Mill and other stuff where it's decent, but not something you'd buy yourself? Help!

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

I agree the "crazy bong bottle" is cool ( I wish I could remember who coined that phrase...one of the best). The family size model is absolutely hilariously absurd, BTW. For me, like most KBD whiskies, the QPR just doesn't justify repeat purchases. I will buy another, but only to "keep" the bottle this time.

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

It's a very attractive, classy bottle containing NPP whisky. To call it Pot Still is misleading because the Distilleries that could have made the whisky do not use Pot Stills. It may have been run through a doubler (sometimes called a pot still by those who wish to create an 'image' for their whisky, Michter's also did that) but the majors all use a column still for the heavy lifting.

An exception would be Woodford of course but I do not believe they have sufficient excess production to be selling off surplus on the spot market.

Whether the bottle and label are worth a premium price is up to you. I wouldn't.

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

Because the producer is a dirty fraud. Its a delicious bourbon in an awesome bottle. But KBD have been pissing Chuck off for 20 years so if he doesn't like them then we don't like them. Plus, look at what they did with Noah's Mill. It was a great bourbon with a 14yr age statement and then in went NAS and started using younger bourbon and totally ruined it.

Any non-disstiller producer, if they are buying bulk aged whiskey, then they are buying a finite amount. Once its gone, its gone. Look at Bourye. The second version had a new name, son of bourye, because there was no more bourye. So when is the current potstill going to run out and they're going to put something else in the same bottle and tell you its the same, but you know it isn't?

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

I had it at a restaurant once and thought it was OK. Some definite sweet notes--certainly drinkable but not very complex. Then when I was at a local store and inquired about it, the clerk had only mediocre praise and suggested spending $10 extra to get the Willet 8 YO, which he said was much better.

At its price point, seems like one is paying more for the "neat" bottle then the contents... but Hey! you got it as a Christmas gift so ENJOY!

Re: Willett Pot Still - How come we never discuss it?

Originally Posted by Lazer

Because the producer is a dirty fraud. Its a delicious bourbon in an awesome bottle. But KBD have been pissing Chuck off for 20 years so if he doesn't like them then we don't like them. Plus, look at what they did with Noah's Mill. It was a great bourbon with a 14yr age statement and then in went NAS and started using younger bourbon and totally ruined it.

Any non-disstiller producer, if they are buying bulk aged whiskey, then they are buying a finite amount. Once its gone, its gone. Look at Bourye. The second version had a new name, son of bourye, because there was no more bourye. So when is the current potstill going to run out and they're going to put something else in the same bottle and tell you its the same, but you know it isn't?

Calling KBD a "dirty fraud" is rdiculous and libelous. Who cares if Chuck doesn't like them? I have had great bourbon and rye under the Willett label. I don't have to know where a whiskey is distilled to like it.